“What’s wrong?” he asked breathlessly as he stripped me out of my nightgown and panties.
“Nothing,” I sighed. “I wasn’t sure if this was real or another dream.”
Enzo pulled back and stared into my eyes, dark and intense. His nostrils flared, and then he made quick work of his clothes until he stood before me, with olive skin covered in muscles and ink. He was…breathtaking.
“Enzo,” I moaned, reaching out to him.
“A lot has changed, Ren.”
I nodded. “For both of us.”
“You’re still the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.” The reverence in his voice seemed to melt away the years, and instead of worrying about not having the twenty-year-old body he’d always known, I slid one hand down his hard abs until my hand wrapped around his cock. “Ren.”
“You are even more beautiful than you were back then,” I said, gripping him tight and stroking him roughly.
He gripped my wrists and pushed me back until I was falling backward onto my bed. Before I could catch my breath, he was on top of me, settling between my thighs. His thick cock pushed at my entrance while his green gaze hypnotized me. “You sure, Ren?”
“Absolutely positive, Enzo. I want you.”
That was all he needed to hear to let go, pushing his hips until he was buried so deep I could hardly breathe. “Fuck,” he pushed the word out through clenched teeth. “So good.”
I knew what he meant. The way he filled me up, so hard and thick, felt like coming home, which was unnerving and exactly perfect. Enzo’s pace was punishing, and I loved every deep stroke, every roll of his hips, and the way he punctuated each movement with a slow glide. It was intoxicating and dizzying, so incredible I couldn’t find words. Or air, and I really, really needed air.
“Breathe, Ren.” His words were gentle and amused.
I let out a slow breath, and Enzo pushed in even deeper until I clamped hard around him, pulsing until finally I exploded with an orgasm so powerful that tears flooded my eyes as my body gripped him possessively. “Enzo, oh, fuck!”
He moved faster and deeper. His forearms bore most of his weight while his mouth devoured mine, swallowing every pleasured cry as he pounded into me until he stilled and pumped me full of his orgasm. “Fuck, Ren. Babe.” His kisses turned softer, almost affectionate.
I liked it. Okay, I loved it, but it was too much.
Too damn confusing.
But I couldn’t pull away, not when I hadn’t felt this good in so long.
Too long.
His body collapsed on top of mine, and he laughed.
And I joined him, laughing until I pushed him out of my body and he flipped onto his back, bringing me with him. I hadn’t laughed after—or during—sex since Enzo.
“Fuck, I have missed you, Ren.” His words were soft, almost wistful. “So fucking much.”
“I missed you too,” I admitted. “You were there my whole life, and then you just disappeared.”
“I know.” His voice was rough. “I was gutted to leave you, Ren. Severing ties with you nearly broke me. I’m not the same man I was when I was with you.”
I turned onto my side, propping my head on my hand so I could see him. “Are you trying to tell me this is just about sex?” I swallowed the bile that rose in my throat. I was a grown-ass woman, and I knew what this was—and wasn’t—when I dove in headfirst.
“No,” he sighed, pressing a kiss to my shoulder. “I’m just telling you that I had to become someone else in order to survive. To protect what was mine.” Another kiss landed on my collarbone.
I reached out and traced the lines of his mouth with one finger. “I’m not the same naïve girl I was back then either, Enzo.”
Guilt flickered in his eyes as he nodded. “I’m not always the Enzo you remember because I can’t be.”
“I’m sure that’s hard for you,” I told him, unable to imagine how hard it was to suppress the good within him to do what needed to be done to preserve his family legacy.
He let out a harsh breath and turned onto his back, gaze fixed on the ceiling. “I had to put up walls, Ren. Big, heavy walls between me and the world. The only one I let through was Matteo. He is my heart. My everything. But I had to change tremendously in order to protect what matters.”
